"Alice laughed: "There's no use trying," she said; "one can't believe impossible things." "I daresay you haven't had much practice," said the Queen. "When I was younger, I always did it for half an hour a day. Why, sometimes I've believed as many as six impossible things before breakfast.". I'm afraid that we're now well into the Lewis Carroll phase of Brexit, but on the plus side, my beloved Luton Town went five points clear at the top of League One... Lib Dems: Safe standing an important opportunity for football fans Travel insurance not guaranteed with no-deal Brexit Lib Dems: ...

In 2013 I visited and photographed the former Stamford Water Street or Stamford East station. The terminus of the short line to Essendine, it closed to passengers in 1957. You can see both the station building and the goods shed in the upper half of this 1947 photograph. They stand beside the River Welland as it makes its way from Market Harborough to the sea.

I've come home this evening with a very heavy heart. It's more like the Spoilt Brat of Legislatures than the Mother of Parliaments, isn't it? The debate this afternoon has been profoundly depressing, particularly the early stages which was more of a bunfight than anything else. Good job they weren't debating anything absolutely essential to our existence, isn't it? There are only a few willing to talk about how the Emperor is stark naked. While our lot are fighting the good fight inside, Welsh Lib Dem Leader Jane Dodds is in Parliament Square: On Facebook, I discover that several of ...

(A content warning for this story. The narrator and principal character are both racist and express racist views. I hope it goes without saying that I don't share those views. Also, this is a horror story, with all that that ... Continue reading →

Given that some Brexit supporters are seeking to downplay this and imply that supermarkets and others are merely saying there 'could' be a problem, we thought we should publish the text in full. BRC letter

Current Fanny Hill, by John Cleland Candide, by Voltaire Molten Heart, by Una McCormack Last books finished The White Tiger, by Aravind Adiga Secret Histories, ed. Mark Clapham Avalanche Soldier, by Susan Matthews Berlin Calling: A Story of Anarchy, Music, The Wall, and the Birth of the New Berlin, by Paul Hockenos δ1 Next books The World of Poo, by Terry Pratchett Bitter Angels, by C. L. Anderson

Photo above by Gage Skidmore on Flickr CCL A Floridian recently said to me that Nancy Pelosi is the most powerful person in America. I had to do a double-take. I thought she said that Nancy Pelosi was the most powerful woman in America. I thought this because people have been saying it for years. But, no, my American acquaintance actually said that Nancy Pelosi is the most powerful person in the USA. After the last month, it is hard to disagree. Whatever your views on the partial US government shutdown, it is hard not to concede that Nancy Pelosi ...

The Conservative motion presented to last night's council meeting provoked a huge attendance of residents concerned about parking proposals being made for their area. Much of the concern had been whipped up by the Conservatives making false claims about non-responses being taken as assent, and misleading people about the consultation process. There was also a [...]

Over the last six months, I have come to see part of the British medical supply chain at close quarters. I have had a couple of mild medical complaints which have necessitated repeat prescriptions. I won't bore you with descriptions of endless mucking about on the patient website, trips up to the surgery and down to the pharmacist. Suffice it to say, being only slightly ailing in this country virtually demands taking on a second career to work the health system to your advantage. You become adept at queuing and sheer bloody-minded tenacity. But don't take my word for it. ...

Responding to the National Crime Agency's report on the spread of 'county lines' drug traffickers, Liberal Democrat Home Affairs Spokesperson Ed Davey said:"When children as young as 12 are being exploited by drug gangs, the Conservative Government's approach clearly needs to change. We need to stop both the supply and demand of illegal hard drugs."Unnecessary Tory cuts to the police have made it easier for organised criminal networks to spread; cuts to the Border Force have made it easier for them to traffic illegal drugs and weapons into the UK; and cuts to youth services have made it easier for ...

Responding to the announcement that Wolverhampton Wanderers are ready to become the first Premier League club to introduce safe standing if government approves a pilot scheme, Liberal Democrat Spokesperson Christine Jardine said: "The Liberal Democrats have long called for safe standing at football matches and we welcome this first step. "This is an important move in providing both safe and affordable space for fans watching the game. It is great to see clubs recognise that this is an opportunity to create a better atmosphere and cut ticket prices." Local Liberal Democrat Frank Little added: "Government is being excessively cautious. Shrewsbury ...

Five out of seven leading travel agents are unable to provide insurance cover guarantees in the event of a no-deal Brexit, a mystery shopper exercise has uncovered. Following the Conservative Government's own advice, the Liberal Democrats contacted seven of the UK's largest insurers to ask whether or not they would provide cover for travel plans disrupted by a 'no-deal' Brexit. However, with only weeks to go until the UK could leave the European Union with a possible no-deal Brexit, only two of the seven companies could confirm insurance would be paid out as normal in the event of a no-deal ...

Responding to reports that up to 1,000 defence staff could be redeployed to help the UK Government cope with a no-deal Brexit, Liberal Democrat Brexit Spokesperson Tom Brake said:"Once again this Tory Government are scaremongering about a no-deal Brexit when the Prime Minister could easily take the option off the table."Theresa May is attempting to run down the clock, tinker with unviable solutions to the Irish border and frighten MPs, businesses and the public into supporting her already defeated deal."The Liberal Democrats are clear the best way out of this deadlock is by giving the people the final say, with ...

I think we all remember who came out with this well-known phrase? Tony Blair made a speech outlining his three priorities for Government in 2001, explaining that each of them was in fact education! The Liberal Democrats have long claimed to be the party for education, with some justification. If you ask a Liberal Democrat member who has been around in the party for at least 24 years what they think the party's best policy has been, the chances are they will sweep you back to Paddy Ashdown's day with "a penny on income tax for education". Back then raising ...

[IMG: Amendments tabled for today] A. Official Labour amendment Tabled by Jeremy Corbyn and backed by a series of frontbenchers, this pushes the party policy of avoiding no deal and instead seeking a form of customs union. Amendments to the Labour amendment,... The post Amendments tabled for today appeared first on FeministMama.

Mon, 12:56: Let's just say it again. "The interesting thing about Salafi propaganda was its popularity and unprecedented succe... https://t.co/fR9d6DqRMG Mon, 14:06: RT @APCOBXLInsider: How will #Brexit influence the power dynamics in the #EU2019? According to #APCO @UKPoliticalNews' @politicobadger, it... Mon, 15:11: RT @EuropeanUni: Here's the line-up - change-makers in politics, academia and the media ready to discuss the future of Brexit #Brexit #EUIi... Mon, 15:14: Conference on Brexit at @epc_eu with an all-star line-up: Jill Rutter, @WeyandSabine, @FabianZuleeg, Sir Ivan Roger... https://t.co/Xz05Xpim8y Mon, 15:18: Strong from @WeyandSabine : we see no ownership of the process in the UK. #Brexit ...

Last week, the House of Lords debated the future essential services run by local authorities. As local government is so important to Liberal Democrats, it's no surprise that several Lib Dems took part in the debate. Celia Thomas talked about two critical issues – social care and, first the provision of public toilets and the impact that cuts have on isolation of people with continence problems. She warned against the idea that we need to provide support for disabled people so that they can work as this can promulgate the idea that there are deserving and undeserving disabled people. Every ...

Theresa May puts forth an agreement that allows Britain to leave the European Union on March 29th. Given it has a transition period attached, there will be no disruption to trade. However, there is a "backstop" clause in the agreement, one that says that if the UK and the EU do not come to a new trade deal before the end of the transition period, either the transition will need to be lengthened or, in a worse case scenario, this backstop comes into force. A huge number of Tory backbenchers don't like the backstop. The EU makes it very clear ...

According to a new opinion poll from Channel 5 News and YouGov, one in ten people in Britain say that Brexit has had a large impact on their mental health. I know that is true in my case. Along with many Brits who believe that the country is better off inside the European Union I [...]

As we face another day of parliamentary chaos over Brexit, talk of a further referendum has subsided. Without Labour throwing its full weight behind it, there are nowhere near enough MPs to give the idea traction. And yet parliament is so split it offers one of the few ways forward if the country is to ... Continue reading What would a new Brexit referendum look like?

Danny Alexander was probably best described as the marmite minister of Lib Dem coalition politics. As Chief Secretary to the Treasury, he completed the "Quad", the 4 ministers who decided the course of the coalition government. He, Nick Clegg, David Cameron and George Osborne fought out the major battles of those years. It's no secret that he and Osborne got on very well. After the Coalition, Danny ended up as Vice President of the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank, based in Beijing. A BBC Scotland programme, Scots in China, caught up with Danny and his family recently. You see him at ...

Labour's failure to act as an effective opposition, particularly over Brexit where they have been enablers not scrutineers, was summed up last night as they struggled for a coherent position on the Tory Government's immigration bill. As the Guardian reports, Theresa May has repeatedly said that her Brexit deal will bring freedom of movement for EU citizens to an end, and that the immigration bill will establish the new, stricter regime. Shadow Home Secretary, Diane Abbott has fiercely criticised the legislation, calling it "one of the flimsiest pieces of legislation on a major issue that I or many of my ...

I recently raised the issue of our Metro Mayor wanting you to dig deeper into your pockets to pay for his staff, wages and office running costs but of course we also have a Police and Crime Commissioner too and guess what they want you to dig deeper as well! Here's a link to my post regarding the Metro Mayor's grab for your pocket:- As for the Police and Crime Commissioner here's what they are demanding in the next Council tax year beginning April 2019:- My point is that I am very far from convinced that we need a ...

It seems some leading business people have well and truly lost the plot. I was reading an article (£) in the Sunday Times that claimed that some businesses had petitioned the government not to ban the use of Huawei equipment from core networks because such a move would cost a lot of money and delay introduction of [...] The post Huawei: why business does not trump security appeared first on Radix.

Hot on the heels of failing to kill the Government's truly egregious Immigration Bill, which rolls out the Hostile Environment on an industrial scale, Jeremy Corbyn's Labour party approaches the Brexit votes tonight in disarray. But first, a reminder of last night. 76 Labour MPs, including Tom Watson and Keir Starmer, just couldn't be bothered to show up tonight — more than enough to have defeated this Tory power-grab. Britain deserves a better opposition, and we're proud that every single @LibDems MP voted against this Bill. https://t.co/n9zQ4cw5Ln — Young Liberals (@YoungLiberalsUK) January 28, 2019 I mean, really. A reminder of ...